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| Don’t
let your business become a victim of corporate
plagiarism. Whether you’ve painted a portrait
or taken a picture, written a book, or a play,
or a musical score, or designed a sculpture,
or building, copyrights enable you to keep others
from copying your creations. Other items that
need copyrights include low-tech arts-and-craft
items (such as dolls—Cabbage Patch Kids),
and high-tech SOFTWARE, and COMPUTER CHIP DESIGNS.
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| This one-hour seminar focuses on what is eligible
for copyright protection and which forms you need
to file for copyright registration. Additional topics
include: what must be in a copyright application,
and how much you should budget for a copyright. $95.95
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Definition |
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| A copyright protects the "expression"
of an idea--literary, artistic, commercial or otherwise.
To qualify for a copyright, the idea must be recorded
upon a tangible medium. A copyright protects works
that are literary, musical, dramatic, choreographic,
graphic, audiovisual, architectural and sound recordings.
The author of the work has exclusive rights upon recording
or documenting it in a tangible medium. The Copyright
Act grants copyright owners exclusive rights in five
categories: reproduction, adaptation, public distribution,
public performance and public display. |
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Scope of Protection |
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| Copyright protects only the
actual expression, not the underlying idea or facts
since concepts, ideas, and thoughts themselves are
accessible to all. Copyright protection lasts for
the author's lifetime plus 70 years after the author's
death. However, if they copyright is a "work
made for hire," the copyright last for the shorter
of the term of 95 years from date of publication or
120 years from the date of creation. |
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Copyright Notice |
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| It is no longer necessary to
place a copyright notice on the distributed work to
have federal copyright protection. However, it is
recommended to use a copyright notice on all works.
Otherwise, an infringer may claim an "innocent
infringement" defense. The copyright owner may
affix the copyright notice to all publicly distributed
copies of a work in a manner that provides reasonable
notice. A copyright notice consists of three elements:
(i) the word "Copyright", "Copr.",
or "(C);" (ii) the year of first publication;
and (iii) the name of the owner of the copyright,
for example:
Copyright 1998 Exxon, Inc.
We suggest including the phrase: "All Rights
Reserved." |
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Benefits of Registration |
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| Registering a copyright has
many benefits, such as eligibility for additional
damages and attorneys fees in the event of an intentional
infringement. Also, registration is required before
bringing an infringement lawsuit. If the copyright
is registered within three months of the work's first
publication, the owner may be entitled to statutory
damages and attorneys fees in an infringement suit
which are not available to unregistered copyrights.
In addition, federal registration is evidence of the
validity of the copyright if registered within five
years of the first publication. You can download the
copyright application forms at the U.S. Copyright
Office's web site (http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/).
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